Biologists Discover Rare Giant Salamander Is in Eastern Kentucky

In case you were wondering (and, if you were, how weird, because this is really specific), Kentucky is loaded for bear with amphibians. We have 57 species in the Commonwealth, and you might think frogs and toads make up the majority, but you'd be wrong.

Salamanders in Kentucky

There are 22 species of frogs and toads residing in the Bluegrass. That's a lot. But they are considerably outnumbered by salamanders, of which there are 35 species. It's funny; I see frogs and toads all the time at my place. I don't think I've ever laid eyes on a salamander.

But a recent discovery indicates to me that my eyesight wouldn't even have to be all that good to see the one that biologists just spotted in an eastern Kentucky stream. It's an eastern hellbender, which isn't uncommon here. Its size, however, is a different matter. Naturally, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources was very excited about this discovery.

Rare Giant Salamander in Kentucky

The Endangered Eastern Hellbender

I might have thought it was a rock, too. But no, it's a salamander, and a very important one at that. Their presence usually indicates a clean, healthy stream, and they keep to themselves on the stream or creek's bed. Though eastern hellbenders are one of Kentucky's 35 salamander species, their numbers are dwindling. Here are some fun facts about the eastern hellbender.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service placed eastern hellbenders, which can be found in 15 states, on the endangered species list in December of 2024.